Rule Breakers
Several decades deep into the 21st century, a time period seemingly far enough into the future that multiple films over the last fifty years have used at the future point of seeming utopia or at least massive futurism, and the reality is we are still shackled with the faults and weaknesses bygone eras which seem like they will never leave us. In large portions of the world not only are basic necessities like food, water, and shelter still daily struggles to achieve (and access to power or technology a frequent luxury) but education remains restricted to select groups based on ancient custom. Entire regions continue to deny themselves the best chances at growth to keep entire genders cut off from the worlds they live in.
But as long as the rules have been in place, there have been people to break them.
The story of Roya Mahboob (Boosheri) has become one of the standouts of that philosophy. One of the first self-made women technology CEOs in Afghanistan, Mahboob burst onto the international stage when she and her group of self-taught high school engineers began entering global robotics contests. With their robot mine-sweeper they sought to enrich their lives and those of their neighbors, looking to build something for their home with their ambition rather than leave it behind. But arrayed against them was not just the walled in morays of their homeland, Taliban ruled Afghanistan which did not believe in education for girls, but the realities of poverty, bureaucracy, and removal from resources which the developed world still isn’t ready to do something about.
Award winning documentary filmmaker Bill Guttentag’s straightforward adaptation of Mahboob’s story doesn’t bring new answers to those questions, or particular insight into Mahboob’s struggle beyond the obvious. But it doesn’t really have to either. The struggle itself is real, albeit heavily ‘based on’ Mahboob’s life as opposed to directly transcribing it, and that is enough to lend real power to its reenactment even if the staging is all very familiar. The man who helped bring the “Masterclass” series to us knows how to structure an inspirational moment and isn’t going to change outlook here. The strictures around the need for self-belief and determination are as prevalent as any studio underdog tale, it’s the guiding thesis of modern inspirational storytelling outside of the faith-based distributors. The dichotomy is more striking in Rule Breakers as it is the faith of others for outside rules which are largely holding the girls back, and it is by turning inwards that a path to victory is possible. More importantly, the film doesn’t need some outrageously original format if the foundations are strong. And they are.
They’re built almost entirely around Roya’s team, from her less forceful friend Esin to her curious co-engineers who need convincing of their path. It’s not just the facts of their story but the easy camaraderie and excitement for the adventure they are undertaking which gives Rule Breakers any sort of spirit or life. There’s no mistaking where the focus is on a film whose main character is based on one of the producers and whose family member co-wrote the screenplay, which is an issue as Roya is most alive and well-defined within the context of her team rather than an isolated individual carrying the weight of expectations on her shoulder. Some of that is by design in good ways as her teammates bring themselves up to the bar that’s been set for them (albeit frequently off screen), but some in bad old ways of needing a central focus in a story which is ultimately more diffuse.
None of which detracts from the film’s strengths, both in its themes, sentiment, and execution. Rule Breakers is exactly what it says on the tin, a satisfying and uplifting tale of struggle against the forces it seems like we should have left behind by now. Hopefully one day we will, as long as more rule breakers follow in Roya Mahboob’s path.
Starring Nikohl Boosheri, Ali Fazal, Amber Afzali, Nina Hosseinzadeh, Sara Malal Rowe and Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Directed by Bill Guttentag.